Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav today flagged-off a group of around 6,000 cyclists from here to Lucknow to spread awareness about the welfare measures taken by his government.

"We have taken a lot of measures for the welfare of our state and its people but they have not been highlighted properly and there is not much awareness about them," Yadav said while flagging off the cyclists at Jantar Mantar here.

He expressed hope that these cyclists, who would travel in three different batches taking three different routes to reach Lucknow, would help in spreading awareness about the work done by his party's government.

Party officials said the cyclists would reach Lucknow in next 12 days. Incidentally, bi-cycle is Samajwadi Party's poll symbol.

The campaign comes at a time when the UP government has been facing criticism from its political opponents over issues of development and welfare measures in the state.